


First Days are the Worst

by orphan_account



Category: Star Stable
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-17
Updated: 2019-02-17
Packaged: 2019-10-30 14:09:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17830025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Brooks has moved to Jorvik to escape his life as a model, and pursue his dreams as a rider.





	First Days are the Worst

Brooks stood on the docks, holding the straps of his backpack tightly. He glanced at the retreating ferry, slowly making its way through the waters back to the mainland. He turned, taking in the yellow stained stones, the worn cobblestones below his feet and the smell of the sea mixing heavily with the familiar stench of manure.

Brooks readjusted his grip on the straps, taking a deep breath. “You got this Sunshield, it's not that bad, its just a brand new place you’ve never been with brand new people” He muttered under his breath, starting to walk. He managed to get up the hill, but in the process, about 14 girls on horses went racing by him. Brooks continued, glancing around as he got to the top of the steps.

The walled-in city was full of life. A fountain bubbled playfully in the center and was surrounded by vendors and different little shops. A stern man in some mall guard and cop cross outfit stood by an open dance floor, looking a little paranoid. A few shops were set into the massive castle-like walls, one looked like a pet shop while another looked like a hair salon. Brooks reached up subconsciously, tugging a hand through his too long blond hair.

He could see a stable behind a building and wall, and a small figure standing over by a tree, chatting with a group of girls on variously colored and sized horses.

“Excuse me, are you okay?” A voice asked, and Brooks snapped his gaze over. A girl leaned off her horse, jet black hair falling into her face as she regarded him with sharp brown eyes. Her horse gave him a once over and tossed its head. The girl seemed to quickly glare at her horse, an unspoken conversation taking place before she looked back to him.

“Uh, I don’t know” Brooks replied, pulling his backpack to his chest. The girl spotted the bag and leaned back into her saddle.

“Let me guess, you’re heading to Moorland, right?” Brooks nodded, still feeling a little nervous and uncertain. The girl grinned. “Well, I guess I get to be the first to Welcome you to Jorvik!”

“Thanks,” Brooks reached up to play with his hoodie strings and caught the nervous tick. He dropped his hand, feeling out of place.

“Do you even know the way to Moorland?” The girl cocked her head. Brooks shook his, eyes bouncing everywhere, not landing on a specific thing.

“I was just going, to figure it out,” Brooks muttered, scuffing his trainers on a loose stone. The girl paused, then shook her head, dropping her reins.

“No, no, this won’t do. We’ll give you a lift.” The horse snorted in shock, twisting its head to look at the girl. “Oh hush Wildflower, you’ll be perfectly alright” The horse snorted again, looking done with everything.

“If you’re, um, horse is not okay with it, I can just walk,” Brooks offered weakly. The girl shook her head.

“Wildflower is just being silly, you don’t look like you weight a thing,” Brooks squirmed as he felt her eyes scan up his body.

“If you don’t mind then,?” Brooks paused.

“Oh, silly me. My name is Olivia Eastvalley, Via for short.” She stuck a hand out and Brooks shook it.

“Brooks Sunshield”

“Well Mr.Sunshield, would you like a ride to the fair town of Moorland?” She asked loftily. Brooks smiled and nodded.

“But of course, Via.” She held out an arm and helped haul Brooks up on the back of her horse. Brooks swore the horse was grumbling beneath him. He gripped his backpack tightly, and then they were off. He gripped the cantle of the saddle, too much of a stranger to this girl to wind his arms around her waist. The horse seemed to catch his nervousness, and again Brooks swore the horse was out to get him. Via chatted idly in front of him, talking about a boy named Shane she just met, quickly moving on to some girl named Willow and a guy named Daine, briefly mentioning a Louisa. Brooks got mental whiplash just listening to her.

“...And that’s how I met Astor too, nice guy and-” She cut herself off. “Oh, we’re here!” She stopped her horse at the top of a hill. Brooks leaned around her and got a glimpse. A small town, partially walled in sat below, a gentle smoke blowing in the breeze from a spot in the woods. Brooks could see two small arenas as well as a set of stables. A small red house sat separated from the town, flowering trees towering over the little house. The sea glinted ahead, curving into a river that flowed away from the little town.

“Wow” Brooks breathed, taking in all below him.

“Isn’t it great?!” Via almost squealed, and Brooks glanced at her. She urged her horse on, and started up again, rambling about her first day in Moorland.

They stopped at the entrance to the town. From up high, Brooks had clearly missed the bustle of the small little town. Girls in weird mismatched outfits darted around on horses, each one as different as its rider.

Via stopped her horse in the middle, and Brooks could feel his anxiety rising as more girls stared at him, and others careened around him and Via. Via deftly dismounted, and Brooks followed.

“Come on, I’ll introduce you to Justin” Via started off at a brisk walk, and Brooks froze.

“But what about..?” He glanced back at her horse, who gave him a look, before wandering to the stables and finding a loose bale of hay. Brooks blinked, and then Via hurried back and dragged him along.

“Justin is super nice I promise, and he’ll give you a better tour then I would, honestly I’m a little bit scatterbrained sometimes so I think I’d leave some stuff out and he will help you find a place to stay, Moorland has some super nice apartments and stables, I moved away because I wanted to be closer to- There he is, JUSTIN!” Brooks grunted as she tugged harder, almost running to a young man. They skidded to a stop behind the man, who turned at the sound of Brooks’s trainers skidded on the stones.

He was young, almost the same age as Brooks. He had dark hair that brushed his shoulders and a pair of warm brown eyes that were full of laughter as he regarded Brooks’s terrified and skittish demeanor and Via’s vibrant one.

“Via, please don’t tell me you’ve been scaring the new ones,” He laughed. Via shrugged.

“What can I say, it's a gift” She turned to Brooks. “Either way, I’ll leave you two to it. Oh, give me your phone” Brooks wordlessly handed it over, already knowing she would have wrestled it out of his hands if he hadn’t. Via punched in her number and handed it back to him.

“Give me a call when you’re all settled in, and I’ll introduce you to everyone, okay?” Brooks nodded, and Via darted off, yelling her goodbyes as she ran back towards the stable. He glanced back to Justin.

“She can be a little much, but I promise, her intentions are good. And all the others are good too.” He patted Brooks on the shoulder. “Now come on, we need to find you a horse.”

Justin led him to a paddock full of horses. Justin began a spiel about some of the specific horses, and how most of them weren’t being used as the owners were off somewhere that Brooks didn’t care much about. He scanned the herd, and his eyes were drawn to a bay horse with white splotches covering its body. The horse stopped grazing and locked eyes with him, and Brooks felt something in his soul click. The horse meandered over, head low to the ground but not breaking eye contact. Justin fell silent as the horse reached them, and pushed its head into Brooks’s hands.

“I stand corrected, she seems to have picked you” Brooks barely heard Justin, as his head was full of roaring noise. His eyes clenched shut against the pain, and he almost let go of the horse to press his hands to his temples.

“ _You are fine little one, just breathe”_ A voice spoke into his mind, and Brooks’s eyes flew open. The horse stared up at him, and it clicked.

“ _Did you just..?”_ Brooks replied, scared to speak out loud. The horse nodded her head in his hands.

“Well that settles it, I believe you two will be fantastic together. I’ll let my father know. Tiger Lily’s owner will be thrilled someone will be riding her. There should be some spare tack in the barn for her too. Come find me again once you have all that, we can get you going.” Justin started back towards the main barn.

Brooks rubbed the horse’s face, his fingers tracing the sun-shaped star in the middle.

“So, what will I call you then, TigerLily is a bit of a mouthful.” The horse pulled her face out of his hands, staring him down. He waited a moment, to see if she would speak in his head again, but she was silent, the only noises from her tail swishing.  “I think Tilly would work, don’t you think?” The mare nickered, and he grinned.

“Tilly it is.”


End file.
